Josh Sawislak, formerly associate director for climate adaptation at the White House Council on Environmental Quality, has joined AECOM as global director of resilience.
He will report to Jason Prior, group chief executive of buildings and places at AECOM’s end market group, and will oversee the company’s strategic initiatives for climate adaptation and resilience efforts, AECOM said Thursday.
“As someone who has served as an owner, contractor and policymaker, Josh brings a wealth of experience in planning and building resilient communities from both the public and private sector perspectives,†Prior said.
Sawislak has been involved in leading infrastructure resilience programs by serving as a senior adviser to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s secretary.
He was also instrumental in crafting recommendations for infrastructure recovery as a member of the President’s Hurricane Sandy Rebuilding Task Force.
Sawislak spent four years at the General Services Administration, where he served as a senior adviser to the GSA administrator and chief emergency response and recovery officer.
The American Planning Association member also sits on the boards of Evacuteer.org and the National Institute of Coastal and Harbor Infrastructure.
He completed an education program on infrastructure development and financing at Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government and graduated from George Washington University with a bachelor’s degree in political science.